'Unfiltered': It’s time to 'wipe the board clean'
Watch the conversation with MoxiWorks’ new CEO, an industry outsider who believes companies — and agents — should approach the future with a fresh perspective.
NextHome CEO James Dwiggins has emerged as a significant voice on the topics that are shaping the real estate industry: lawsuits, innovation, leadership. But Dwiggins doesn't just answer questions, he asks them of guests on Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, his podcast with Keith Robinson, NextHome's chief strategic officer.
On this week's episode of Real Estate Insiders Unfiltered, MoxiWorks CEO Eric Elfman — who took the helm at the tech company in June — explains why he decided to get into the real estate industry during such a challenging period: "Crisis screams opportunity."
He notes that the changes in real estate aren't just affecting brokerages and agents — "tech companies are in massive flux as well." And as a tech entrepreneur, Elfman says he's ready to disrupt the industry, and to disrupt MoxiWorks from the inside out
Watch now to see why the industry and agents should take a "clean slate" approach: Elfman says he still has a lot to learn about the real estate industry, but he also sees a benefit to being someone coming in with "fresh eyes" and asking, "What is life like today for an agent? Forget about what it was. I think we can all agree it's going to be harder to make money as an agent going forward than it was in the past."
So how is MoxiWorks thinking about the agent experience today — and how will Elfman steer the company to support its customers?
"It feels like we have 100 products, and that's kind of too much for a company doing what we do. We're getting back to focusing on our only job, which is to help an agent find, win and close a listing."
And he's doing that by approaching MoxiWorks from a different perspective. "If I didn't join this company and I wanted to start a new business, I'd consider it in real estate because I think there is room for fresh new ideas. … So what am I trying to do? I'm trying to disrupt ourselves. I'm trying to think with the heart of a startup."
Agents should embrace a similar mindset, says Elfman — and take advantage of tech in the process. "I'd go to the whiteboard and whatever's on it, I'd wipe it clean. I'd start thinking about next year and forget about all of your pre-set notions and all of the little things that have worked for you in the past. … When you are faced with massive change and you have got to do more with less, you've got to use technology."
The views, thoughts and opinions expressed in the Real Estate Insiders podcast belong solely to the podcast creators and guests, and not Real Estate News.